White Bear Lake

Welcome to Orchid Restaurant!

Located in the White Bear Township shops adjacent to the White Bear Township theater, the Orchid Restaurant is owned by the Nguyen family who also own two restaurants in France. The fresh, distinctive flavors of Vietnamese and French cooking are well represented on the Orchid Restaurant menu. Chinese and Thai dishes are also featured. Additional restaurant services include children’s, vegetarian, and gluten free menus as well as gift certificates and catering. The restaurant offers selected wines to complement their menus and a full bar.

White Bear Lake is a city in Ramsey and Washington counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 23,797 at the 2010 census. The city is located on White Bear Lake, one of the largest lakes in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area.

The city is named after its largest lake, White Bear Lake. American writers have delivered differing versions of the legend that explains the origin of the name. In her book Indian Legends of Minnesota, Mrs. Carl T. Thayer writes that “It is said that a Sioux maiden fell in love with a Chippewa brave. She, the daughter of the Chief, on learning that her father planned war against the Chippewa, ran to her lover and warned him. The brave went alone into the Sioux village to ask for peace and the hand of the maiden. Before the Chief would agree, the Chippewa would have to do a brave deed.”

The railroad was the largest man-made happening in White Bear Lake. On September 10, 1868, the Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad officially opened the extension to White Bear Lake. This was a gala occasion. Ten platform cars of 300 men and four passenger cars for 200 ladies made the trip from St. Paul. By 1874, Mark Twain had included White Bear Lake as the resort in his “Life on the Mississippi.” The “American Travelers Journal” 1881 proclaimed, “One of the most popular resorts in the magic northlands is White Bear Lake.” BarnumÕs hotel became the Leip House, featuring a ballroom, billiard room, dancing pavilion, bowling alley, and boats. F.C. Williams opened the Williams House on the Murray property on Lake Avenue. James Waters opened the White Bear House at the depot. In 1879, the Ramaley Pavilion was opened and described as “perhaps the finest structure around the lake” (Breeze 1890). There was Lake Side Cottage on Lake north of 6th and “Ch‰teau gay.” Shady Side, BachelorÕs Rest and Hotel Benson were three of the resorts at Bald Eagle Lake.

As of the census of 2010, there were 23,797 people, 9,945 households, and 6,304 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,967.2 inhabitants per square mile. There were 10,479 housing units at an average density of 1,306.6 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 90.1% White, 2.5% African American, 0.4% Native American, 3.5% Asian, 0.9% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.3% of the population. There were 9,945 households out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.2% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.6% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92.

The Cottage Park summer residents built a club house in 1881 where they had their meals, entertainment and social life. In 1881, the Manitou Implement Co. developed the Island for cottages with the added important feature of water works. The “Fillebrown” house on Lake Avenue was built in 1879 by C.P. Noyes. It was purchased in 1881 by Judge George Young and in 1905 purchased by the J. Walter Fillebrown family who donated the house to the White Bear Lake Area Historical Society in the 1970s. The City of White Bear Lake was incorporated in 1921.